Harry Potter: The Way It Should Have Been
by yellowjacket93
Summary: Title self explanatory. H/Hr as it should have been. Other pairings to be decided. Smart and Powerful Harry but not Super!
1. Chapter 1

_**HARRY POTTER: THE WAY IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN**_

Hey. I'm new to this site and this is my first ever fan fiction. I have read a few fanfics and decided to write my own in order to improve my writing as I'm heading off to college this fall. I don't consider myself to be a better writer than JKR, just that she could have made it a better story by doing things differently.

That said, this will be an H/Hr fic. Of all the things that annoyed me in the last 2 books of the series, the biggest was the R/Hr pairing. It makes absolutely no sense. I am convinced that Hermione loved Harry till the end and is supported by many examples in DH, the most obvious being that she chose to stay with Harry when Ron deserted them. She only settled for Ron because Harry was too bloody oblivious, thanks to his loveless childhood with the Dursleys. I may have been able to stomach the Harry/Ginny pairing if their relationship had developed throughout the books. However, the sudden transformation of Ginny from the 'sister of Ron' in the 5 initial books into Super!Ginny in book 6 just makes me want to bash my head against a wall. It's unreal, unbelievable and oedipal (she looks like his mum!).

I don't particularly like the character of Ron. He is mean, insensitive, selfish, petty and jealous. I haven't decided if there will be any Ron bashing but you should be warned either way.

While this won't be a Super!Harry story, Harry will grow stronger and smarter, but at a believable pace. I refuse to believe that 3 teenagers beat the worst Dark Lord and his minions due to an insane amount of good luck and some guardian angel watching over them.

Now that I've ranted, I'll just give the disclaimer and get on with the story. I'll just do it once and it should be understood that it is applicable for the whole story and not just a single chapter.

**DISCLAIMER:**_**All characters and settings that you may recognize in this story belong to JK Rowling. I am making no money off this and the only profit I am deriving is the satisfaction of making things go the way i feel they should have gone.**_

_**Chapter 1**_

**This takes place near the end of third year, right after Snape shouted at Harry and Hermione for rescuing Sirius.**

_As Dumbledore and Fudge left the dormitory, Madam Pomfrey hurried to the door and locked it again. Muttering angrily to herself, she headed back to her office._

_There was a low moan from the other end of the ward. Ron had woken up. They could see him sitting up, rubbing his head, looking around._

_'What-what happened?', he groaned. 'Harry? Why are we in here? Where's Sirius? Where's Lupin? What's going on?'_

_Harry and Hermione looked at each other_

_'You explain', said Harry, helping himself to some more chocolate._

Hermione glared at him lightly, moved onto his bed to sit beside him and stole some of his chocolate, ignoring his squawk of protest. Sighing and leaning slightly against Harry, she began recounting the events that occurred after Ron had passed out.

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><p>'Bloody hell Harry! You actually conjured a Patronus mate!', an amazed Ron exclaimed. 'I always miss the most interesting parts of our adventures.'<p>

'Honestly Ron, there is nothing interesting about a hundred Dementors trying to give you your first kiss.' an incredulous Hermione replied. 'We could have died if Harry hadn't been able to do that.' She then turned towards Harry. 'I must say again Harry, that was a very powerful piece of magic, especially for a thirteen year old. Did you know that the majority of adult witches and wizards can't perform that charm correctly? It's why Dementors are so devastatingly effective against criminals. And to think Sirius spent 12 years with them…' she trailed off shuddering at the memory of her own experience with them.

Harry, thinking she was cold, wrapped an arm around Hermione and faced Ron, not noticing the slight blush that had covered Hermione's face. 'She's right Ron, trust me, you don't want to be anywhere near them.'

At that moment, Madam Pomfrey reentered the dormitory. 'All right that's enough. You've all had an exciting evening and Mr. Weasley here needs rest to recover. I'm giving him a Dreamless Sleep potion, I suggest the two of you rest as well. You may leave in the morning after breakfast.', she said, pouring the potion in a goblet for Ron. He was knocked out as soon as he swallowed it. Madam Pomfrey took his goblet from his hands and placed it onto his bedside table. With a stern gaze at Harry and Hermione to remind them that they better sleep soon as well, she went back to her office.

The two third years sat there in silence, Harry's arm still around Hermione's shoulders and her head resting lightly on his. As Harry sighed and threw his head back to observe the ceiling, he thought back to the events of the night and realised that he couldn't have done half of it if not for the witch beside him. That thought led to him reevaluate his friendship with her. He realised that he had been a royal prick to her this past year and thought of how much he must have hurt her left him feeling sick. Despite that, Hermione had come through for him again, risking her life for his godfather, a person they had thought to be a delusional mass murderer after Harry scant hours ago.

Meanwhile, Hermione, feeling particularly content, contemplated the familiar tingly sensation she experienced whenever she was with Harry like this. She remembered how terrified she had been when flying on the Hippogriff as she wasn't particularly fond of heights. She also remembered how exhilarating it had felt, with her arms wrapped tight around Harry's midsection her face buried in his back and her blood pounding through her veins, making her feel surreal and lightheaded.

_What does it mean? Is it my magic reacting with his?_

_Don't be stupid, it doesn't suit you. You know very well what it means._

_Who asked you?_

_I am you. You are asking yourself. Ergo, you asked me._

_Smart-arse inner Hermione. I wonder if Harry and Ron feel like this when I talk to them._

_They do._

_Urgh! Let's get back to the issue at hand. Now, what does this tingling mean? I've been feeling it since the middle of second year,_ she thought nibbling on her bottom lip.

_You like him idiot._

_I resent that slight on my intellect. And of course I like him, he's my best friend._

_I mean you like like him._

_Whatever does that mean? _

_DO I NEED TO SPELL IT OUT FOR YOU WOMAN? YOU HAVE A CRUSH ON HIM!_

_I most certainly do not!_

_You do!_

_Do not!_

_Do too!_

_Do not!_

Harry interrupted this mental debate by sighing and running his free hand through his hair, distracting Hermione and making it even messier. He shot a furtive look at Hermione before looking up at the ceiling again.

'Hey Hermione?'

'Yes Harry?'

'Thank you.'

'Whatever for?', asked Hermione, a little taken aback by the sincerity in his words.

'For helping me save Sirius. For nagging me to do my homework. For pushing me to better in class. For caring for me. For giving me the first hug I remember. For being the best friend a bloke could ask for. For being you, Hermione.'

Hermione felt her throat choking and a stinging behind her eyelids. That was the sweetest thing anyone had ever said to her! And she had to admit, that while she did everything for Harry and Ron because she cared, it had hurt that her efforts weren't acknowledged and that she was outright ridiculed by Ron. Coming from Harry, this expression of gratitude meant a lot to her.

Gaining control of her emotions and clearing her throat, she asked, 'That's very sweet of you Harry and I definitely appreciate the gratitude, but what brought it on all of a sudden?'

Harry ran his hand through his hair again and looking straight into her chocolate brown eyes, answered, 'Well, I was thinking about how glad I was that you had a time-turner with you so we could save Sirius and then I started thinking about how glad I was that you were with me today, which in turn made me think of how glad I was that you are my friend. Then I realized that while I certainly am thankful, I've never shown you my appreciation. You're my best friend, Hermione.'

'You're my best friend too Harry.', said Hermione with a smile tugging at her lips at the genuine warmth in his voice.

'NO! I'm not!', said Harry vehemently, throwing his arms up in the air. He continued, ignoring Hermione's startled expression, 'Don't you see? You have been so good to me and I've been a prat. I've treated you like trash and you don't deserve it. You are always looking out for me and I respond by not even defending you when Ron starts fighting with you. I never take your side, even when I know you're almost always right!'

'I've been especially terrible to you this year. First the Firebolt and then Crookshanks. Hagrid had to remind me that I should hold you more important than a broomstick or a rat to make me realize what an arse I was being.'

'Oh Harry!', Hermione cried, throwing her arms around his neck and burying her face in the crook of his neck. 'It was my fault too! I know how those horrid relatives of yours treated you and denied you gifts. I should have talked to you about my suspicions. Instead I just tattled to McGonagall about the most precious gift you've ever received.'

Harry put his arms around her waist, the feeling of the wetness of her tears against his neck instantly calming him down and as he cursed himself for making her cry again. 'What I'm trying to say is, that I'm sorry for the way I have treated you in the past. I have to stop making allowances for Ron just because he was my first friend. You are equally as important to me and from now on, I'll ensure that you know that. I'm going to earn the right to be called your best friend. So, going back to where we started, Thank you Hermione.', he whispered softly.

Hermione's heart melted and she pulled away slightly. Looking deep into his emerald green eyes, she whispered back just as softly, 'You're welcome Harry.' Then she did something she had never done before and she kissed him chastely on the cheek.

Harry had a stunned expression on his face. As far as he remembered, no one had ever done that to him, not even Mrs. Weasley though he was quite certain that his own mother would have kissed him. He lifted a hand to lightly graze the spot on his cheek Hermione had kissed and a small smile grew on his face as he slightly tightened his hold on the witch in his arms.

However, Hermione missed all of this as she had buried her furiously blushing face back into the crook of Harry's neck. When she felt his arms tighten around her, a smile blossomed on her face and she thought to herself _All right, I have a crush on him._

_Told you._

_Shut up!_

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><p>Well that concludes the first chapter. Please review and let me know what you think.<p>

I also need a beta. I would really appreciate any help I can get.

Yellowjacket


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you all for the encouraging reviews. Enjoy the second chapter**

_I've lifted some of the text directly from the books and altered a little of it to suit my needs._

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><p><em><strong>Chapter 2<strong>_

When Harry, Ron, and Hermione left the hospital wing at noon the next day, it was to find an almost deserted castle. The sweltering, heat and the end of the exams meant that everyone was taking full advantage of another Hogsmeade visit. Neither Ron nor Hermione felt like going, however, so they and Harry wandered onto the grounds, still talking about the extraordinary events of the previous night and wondering where Sirius and Buckbeak were now. Sitting near the lake, watching the giant squid waving its tentacles lazily above the water, Harry lost the thread of the conversation as he looked across to the opposite bank. The stag had galloped toward him from there just last night…

A shadow fell across them and they looked up to see a very bleary-eyed Hagrid, mopping his sweaty face with one of his tablecloth-sized handkerchiefs and beaming down at them.

"Know I shouldn' feel happy, after wha' happened las' night," he said. "I mean, Black escapin' again, an, everythin' — but guess what?"

"What?" they said, pretending to look curious, though Harry winked at Hermione and she smiled back discretely.

"Beaky! He escaped! He's free! Bin celebratin' all night!"

"That's wonderful!" said Hermione, giving Ron a reproving look because he looked as though he was close to laughing.

"Yeah… can't've tied him up properly," said Hagrid, gazing happily out over the grounds. "I was worried this mornin', mind… thought he mighta met Professor Lupin on the grounds, but Lupin says he never ate anythin' las' night…"

"What?" said Harry quickly.

"Blimey, haven' yeh heard?" said Hagrid, his smile fading a little. He lowered his voice, even though there was nobody in sight. "Er — Snape told all the Slytherins this mornin'… Thought everyone'd know by now… Professor Lupin's a werewolf, see. An' he was loose on the grounds las' night… He's packin' now, o' course."

"He's packing?" said Harry, alarmed. "Why?"

"Leavin', isn' he?" said Hagrid, looking surprised that Harry had to ask. "Resigned firs' thing this mornin'. Says he can't risk it happenin again."

Harry scrambled to his feet, fuming. "That slimy son of a bitch! Just because he lost his Order of Merlin he had to go and out Professor Lupin. I'm going to see him," he said to Ron and Hermione.

"But if he's resigned —"

"— doesn't sound like there's anything we can do —"

"I don't care. I still want to see him. I'll meet you back here."

Lupin's office door was open. He had already packed most of his things. The Grindylow's empty tank stood next to his battered old suitcase, which was open and nearly full. Lupin was bending over something on his desk and looked up only when Harry knocked on the door.

"I saw you coming," said Lupin, smiling. He pointed to the parchment he had been poring over. It was the Marauder's Map.

"I just saw Hagrid," said Harry. "And he said you'd resigned. It's not true, is it?"

"I'm afraid it is," said Lupin. He started opening his desk drawers and taking out the contents.

"Why?" said Harry. "The Ministry of Magic doesn't think you were helping Sirius, do they?"

"No. Professor Dumbledore managed to convince Fudge that I was trying to save your lives." He sighed. "That was the final straw for Severus. He — er — accidentally let slip that I am a werewolf this morning at breakfast."

Harry snorted, letting Lupin know what he thought of this _accident_. "You're not leaving just because of that!" said Harry.

Lupin smiled wryly.

"This time tomorrow, the owls will start arriving from parents… They will not want a werewolf teaching their children, Harry. And after last night, I see their point. I could have bitten any of you… That must never happen again."

"You're the best Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher we've ever had!" said Harry. "Don't go!"

Lupin shook his head and didn't speak. He carried on emptying his drawers. Then, while Harry was trying to think of a good argument to make him stay, Lupin said, "From what the headmaster told me this morning, you saved a lot of lives last night, Harry. If I'm proud of anything I've done this year, it's how much you've learned… Tell me about your Patronus."

"How d'you know about that?" said Harry, distracted.

"What else could have driven the Dementors back?"

Harry told Lupin what had happened. When he'd finished, Lupin was smiling again.

"Yes, your father was always a stag when he transformed," he said. "You guessed right… that's why we called him Prongs though Sirius thought Rudolph was funny as well."

Lupin threw his last few books into his case, closed the desk drawers, and turned to look at Harry.

"Here — I brought this from the Shrieking Shack last night," he said, handing Harry back the Invisibility Cloak. "And…" He hesitated, and then held out the Marauder's Map too. "I am no longer your teacher, so I don't feel guilty about giving you back this as well. It's no use to me, and I daresay you, Ron, and Hermione will find uses for it."

Harry took the map and grinned. "You told me Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs would've wanted to lure me out of school… you said they'd have thought it was funny."

"And so we would have," said Lupin, now reaching down to close his case. "I have no hesitation in saying that James would have been highly disappointed if his son had never found any of the secret passages out of the castle. You know what Harry? Write to sometime and I'll tell you about our time at Hogwarts. We do need someone to carry on the legacy of the Marauders." he finished, flashing him a mischievous smile which really seemed to take years off his face.

There was a knock on the door. Harry hastily stuffed the Marauder's Map and the Invisibility Cloak into his pocket. It was Professor Dumbledore.

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><p>Harry left Lupin's office, his mind teeming with thoughts and questions as he pondered the chat he'd had with the Headmaster. It was quite a lot to process, he needed Hermione to help him. He smiled to himself as he thought of their conversation the previous night. As he did, he thought of another thing he needed to talk to Hermione about. There were two weeks of term left and he would ensure he made the most of his time with her while they waited for their exam results.<p>

Nobody at Hogwarts now knew the truth of what had happened the night that Sirius, Buckbeak, and Pettigrew had vanished except Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Professor Dumbledore. As he made his way to the library, Harry heard many different theories about what had really happened, but none of them came close to the truth.

Malfoy was furious about Buckbeak. He was convinced that Hagrid had found a way of smuggling the Hippogriff to safety, and seemed outraged that he and his father had been outwitted by a gamekeeper.

Percy Weasley, meanwhile, had much to say on the subject of Sirius's escape.

"If I manage to get into the Ministry, I'll have a lot of proposals to make about Magical Law Enforcement!" he told the only person who would listen — his girlfriend, Penelope though admittedly, she did look like she would love to hit him with a Silencio.

He entered the library and made his way over to the table Hermione had commandeered back in their first year as her own. It was in an out of way the corner, a nice and cozy place to sit and study. It was surrounded by the Transfiguration and Charms section bookshelves on two sides and a wall with a huge window at the back. It was well lit by sunlight during the day and candles during the night. Harry loved to just sit there and relax after a tiring Quidditch practice, listening to the sound of Hermione scratching away with a quill and turning the pages of humongous pile of books she usually had with her. Often, Ron would come along and ask him about practice, Hermione would shush him, he would snipe back at her and an argument would follow till either Madam Pince shut them up Hermione huffed and ignored Ron and went back to her books.

He saw the profile of Hermione's face just around the corner with her quill between her lips and a faraway look in her eyes. He smiled at the familiar scene and as he rounded the corner, he saw her sitting with the unlikeliest study group he could imagine- Susan Bones the cute Hufflepuff redhead, Padma Patil the dusky Ravenclaw beauty and two other pretty girls. The problem? They were Slytherins!

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><p>Hermione was sitting in the library, humming a song, with her quill between her teeth and her Arithmancy Text in front of her as she chewed on a particularly difficult problem set about the Confundus Charm. Along with her, were her 'secret' friends. These were Susan Bones, Padma Patil and strangely enough, two Slytherins, Daphne Greengrass and Tracy Davis. She thought back to how this unusual group came to be.<p>

She had met them in Arithmancy class, which like Ancient Runes, was a class that had members of all four houses. She had been feeling particularly lonely since neither Harry nor Ron was with her in the class. She had decided to sit with Susan, as she had had Herbology classes with her for two years and thus was on speaking terms. Susan had been sitting with Padma (Susan and Padma had potions together) and thus the three had become friends.

The two Slytherin girls however came into the group in a different manner. Hermione had been wary of them since Slytherins had always been mean to Harry and being a muggle -born probably wouldn't get her any brownie points either. However, the two girls had been perfectly civil and courteous. Also, there was an intellectual competition between Hermione and Daphne as they both kept vying for the first position. Finally, one day, Daphne had approached her in the library and asked to sit with her. Always polite, Hermione had acquiesced. One thing led to another and they had talked well into the night.

Hermione found out that not all Slytherins were like Malfoy and his cronies and that the majority of them minded their own business. She found out that while they were cunning and ambitious, they did not huddle around plotting world domination and the demise of all Gryffindors. Daphne's sharp wit and caustic tongue greatly impressed the brunette and thus the five came to be friends. While they were not doing anything wrong, by some unspoken consent, they decided to keep this group to themselves and while they did not sneak about and hide, they didn't go out of their way to bring attention to themselves either.

Hermione hadn't told Harry or Ron about them basically because she did not want to see their reaction when they found out that she was friends with Slytherins. She could almost hear Ron's indignant voice in her head calling her 'traitor' and accusing her of 'betraying Gryffindor' and 'fraternizing with the enemy'. Also, there was a part of her, an extremely small part, which wanted to keep them to herself. She had never had any female friends before and she felt ecstatic at being a part of an all girl group. She loved her boys very much and she knew she would always be very close to them but it felt nice to be in feminine company as well.

That had been months ago. Now, she felt slightly guilty after having that conversation with Harry. She knew that rationally, it was nothing to feel guilty about, she knew Harry hung out with his Quidditch teammates and his dorm mates from time to time but she couldn't shake off the feeling that she should tell Harry, that he would listen to her, understand her and even support her.

Thinking about Harry led to thinking of her newly realized feelings for him. Now that she had admitted it, she couldn't believe that she didn't realize it before. She had always thought that he was rather cute and recently, he had started getting boyishly handsome. He was also kind and compassionate and she was awed by his courage, determination and power. She knew he was rather intelligent as well and that if he only applied himself more instead of lazing off with Ron, he would do much better in classes.

Now that she thought about it, the only reason she had initially tolerated Ron was because he was Harry's friend and she wanted to be close to Harry too. Of course she had grown to care about Ron as well, but he really tested her patience with his thickness.

She looked around the table at each of her friends, wondering if she should say anything about her newly recognized feelings for Harry. After all, wasn't that one of the most common topics for girl chats –boys? However, she decided not to. For one thing, these girls were not the mindless airheads that her dorm mates were prone to be. Also, it was well known that Susan had a huge crush on Harry ever since she had been partnered with him in Herbology during the first term of third year. Hermione suspected Daphne felt something for the Gryffindor Golden Boy as well because she had observed her staring at him many times in the past few months during Potions and meals. _No_, she decided, _best not to say anything for now_.

As she was contemplating the best way to deal with a situation in which all their feelings came out and they discovered that 3 out of 5 witches had a crush on the same guy, she heard the voice of the object of her affections:

"Hermione!"

She turned and saw Harry standing there with his shirt untucked and hair messier than usual glaring suspiciously at the Slytherin girls while he tried to subtly get between them and her.

_Oh bollocks!_

She saw every other girl jump in synchronization and had to subdue her giggles as Susan squeaked and turned bright red. The slightest of blushes coloring Daphne's cheeks as she took in Harry's rather roguish appearance clued Hermione in to the fact that her speculations about Daphne's interest in her best friend had indeed been correct.

Harry seemed to realize that he had startled them by coming there suddenly and looked sheepish though his eyes never left the Slytherins. They both stared back defiantly though Daphne seemed to be getting redder. Deciding to save her friend the embarrassment and to curb the increasingly awkward moment, Hermione decided to take action.

"Oh hello Harry! These are my friends Susan Bones, Padma Patil, Daphne Greengrass and Tracy Davis. Girls, my best friend Harry Potter." She turned to Harry and added "They're in my Arithmancy class. Daphne and Padma are in Ancient Runes as well."

Harry looked at her inquisitively but nodded and smiled slightly at the other girls as well, who returned his greeting. Hermione sighed in relief; she was glad Ron wasn't with him, he would have probably began shouting and creating a scene which would have embarrassed her and gotten them kicked out of the library.

"So Harry… were you looking for me for a reason?" she asked, because she could see that he was making the girls uncomfortable with his scrutiny and also because she was curious.

"Huh?", he asked, finally looking at her, "Oh yeah… I wanted to talk to you about something. But it's okay, we can talk later. No really, we can talk later, it isn't anything important." He added when Hermione raised her eyebrows at him.

"That's alright I was finished anyways. Let's take a walk in the grounds." She picked up her bag and slung it over her shoulders. Grabbing Harry by the elbow, she turned to her friends, "See you tomorrow girls. Come on Harry."

"Err… bye.", said Harry, and they turned and walked out leaving behind four bewildered girls, Susan still resembling an overripe tomato.

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><p>They walked in silence for a few moments. Hermione had conveniently forgotten to remove her hand as they walked towards the lake.<p>

"So?", Harry asked once they reached the huge birch tree under which the trio had spent many afternoons just talking and relaxing (or in Hermione's case, reading).

"So what?", feigned Hermione.

Harry rolled his eyes at Hermione's attempt at being innocent. "Mind telling me since when did you start hanging out with Slytherins?"

"For your information, I can hang out with anyone I want to. You do not control me Harry James Potter!"

Even after 50 years, Hermione wouldn't be able to answer why she suddenly snapped at Harry. It may have been because she was defending her friends, she may have been taking out her frustration at her treatment at the hands of Harry and Ron that year or she may have been PMSing. Either way, she instantly regretted her reaction when she saw the hurt look in Harry's eyes which he soon masked.

"Harry I'm sor-"

"It's okay Hermione. I know I haven't been much of a friend this year and I totally understand you wanting to hang out with someone else. I was genuinely curious and a bit concerned… I mean, Slytherins aren't the nicest people around are they?"

Of course his concern only made her feel worse. However she forged ahead, "It's alright Harry. I was guarded as well initially but they are really nice and friendly. Daphne's really intelligent in fact. What?", she asked seeing Harry make a funny face which was somewhere between confusion and amusement.

"Nothing… it's just hard to imagine Daphne 'Ice-Princess' Greengrass as being warm and friendly, you know what I mean?"

Hermione giggled. She had been perplexed as well until she had realized that it was a façade to turn away potential pursuers. She was very pretty after all, with her straight buttery blonde hair, icy blue eyes and slim figure; it gave jerks like Malfoy ideas. Daphne was a very private person, and the four girls were probably the only ones other than her family who knew the real her. Now that she thought about it, she reminded Hermione of Harry and how she and the Weasleys were the only ones who got the real boy and not the brooding legendary hero.

"Anyway, I guess they should be alright if they've got the Granger-Stamp-of-Approval. I mean, you're the smartest witch I know, I doubt you would hang out with them if they really were the nasty ones."

Hermione smiled brightly at him and swatted his arm half-heartedly. She then proceeded to tell him about how they had come to be friends. Harry accepted it easily enough and Hermione was glad that she could her earlier assumptions about his reaction had been proved right.

"So… tell me why you sought me out.", she said as she sat on the tree with her back against the bark and patted the ground beside her.

"Well…", Harry said, squatting down beside her and proceeded to relay his conversation with Lupin and Dumbledore.

"Hmm… you know, I'm sure I've read about something called a life-debt. It's really obscure and each debt is different but it creates a bond between the two people… I think I'll research it some more…"

"What? There actually is a thing called a life debt? I thought Dumbledore meant Pettigrew's conscience won't let him hurt me or something like that!"

"Of course there is Harry. Ginny owes you one I'm sure, Sirius probably owes one to both of us and I suppose I owe you one as well after last night."

"What about when Ron and I saved you from the troll? Don't you owe him one as well?"

"Well since the two of you locked the troll in with me and it was Ron who made me cry and be in the loo anyway, I doubt I do. If magic thinks I do then I surely must have paid it by now. The number of times I have saved him from failing a class and getting on the bad side of Mrs. Weasley..." She grinned at Harry.

Harry chuckled in response. "Anyway, I was wondering about Trelawney's prediction-"

"Yes. I can't believe Dumbledore knows she is a fraud but he lets her teach here anyway. Ooooh I'm so mad right now… it's degrading the level of education."

"But you can't say she's a complete fraud. She has made two predictions. Kind of makes you wonder what her other prediction was."

Hermione just narrowed her eyes and glared at Harry, letting him know that making two predictions in her entire career was not enough. Wisely, he quickly backpedalled, "Not that it makes it alright of course. In fact, I was thinking of dropping Divination. It's a load of tripe and frankly, I'm getting tired of her predicting my early and tragic demise."

Hermione's countenance brightened suddenly and she smiled at him "Really? That's good Harry. But you have to take a minimum two electives, CoMC won't be enough."

"Yeah… I was actually thinking of dropping it and taking up Ancient Runes, seems really interesting to me. Arithmancy doesn't really seem like my thing."

"Oh that's wonderful! We'll have another class together then!"

Harry grinned at her smile, "Do you think McGonagall will let me switch?"

Hermione snorted, "Of course she will. She's probably the only one who detests the subject more than I do. Come on Harry, let's go see her now!", and taking his hand, she began walking towards the castle, Harry walking behind her, smiling and shaking his head at his studious friend.

* * *

><p>McGonagall agreed immediately of course. She seemed almost delighted that he wanted to ditch Divination. Ron's reaction, however, was a polar opposite:<p>

"Why would you want to leave Divination and take up Runes? It's easy marks and no effort."

"I'm getting tired of listening how I'm going to have a tragic and painful death Ron. Besides, you know as well as I do that we don't actually learn anything, I'm just wasting my time."

"But that's it innit? You don't have to do anything! It's like a free period!"

"I decided I want to learn something useful Ron. Besides, this way I get to have a class in common with Hermione as well."

"So that's it? You're ditching me for her?", he asked incensed, his face matching his hair in color.

"Don't be ridiculous Ron, you know as well as I do that this has nothing to do with you, you're welcome to drop Divination and join Runes with me, do something worthwile."

Needless to say, that didn't go down well with Ron, and he spent the next two days sulking and being curt to Harry and Hermione.

The remaining days passed by with Hermione happily tutoring Harry in Ancient Runes and making him promise to continue studying during the summer. They also spent quite a lot of time just talking about anything and everything, regardless of whether Ron joined them or not. Even though she had always felt closer to Harry than to Ron, Hermione could quite honestly say that their friendship had recovered from the beating it had taken that year and that it was on its way to becoming even stronger. Obviously there were a few awkward moments due to her attraction to Harry but she covered them easily enough.

Harry meanwhile was blissfully oblivious to Hermione's growing fondness for him though he did enjoy the extra time he had spent with her. He was amazed at how much there was that hadn't known about her before and he was discovering now. He picked up a few books to read over the summer from the library. He had thought of undertaking a few projects over the summer. He doubted Hermione would approve of them though, so he said nothing to her about them.

Though the weather was perfect, though the atmosphere was so cheerful, though he knew they had achieved the near impossible in helping Sirius to freedom, Harry had never approached the end of a school year in worse spirits.

He certainly wasn't the only one who was sorry to see Professor Lupin go. The whole of Harry's Defense Against the Dark Arts class was miserable about his resignation.

"Wonder what they'll give us next year?" said Seamus Finnigan gloomily.

"Maybe a vampire," suggested Dean Thomas hopefully.

It wasn't only Professor Lupin's departure that was weighing on Harry's mind. He couldn't help thinking a lot about Professor Trelawney's prediction. He kept wondering where Pettigrew was now, whether he had sought sanctuary with Voldemort yet.

But the thing that was lowering Harry's spirits most of all was the prospect of returning to the Dursleys. For maybe half an hour, a glorious half hour, he had believed he would be living with Sirius from now on… his parents' best friend… It would have been the next best thing to having his own father back. And while no news of Sirius was definitely good news, because it meant he had successfully gone into hiding, Harry couldn't help feeling miserable when he thought of the home he might have had, and the fact that it was now impossible.

The exam results came out on the last day of term. Harry, Ron, and Hermione had passed every subject. Harry was amazed that he had got through Potions. He had a shrewd suspicion that Dumbledore might have stepped in to stop Snape failing him on purpose. Snape's behavior toward Harry over the past two weeks had been quite alarming. Harry wouldn't have thought it possible that Snape's dislike for him could increase, but it certainly had. A muscle twitched unpleasantly at the corner of Snape's thin mouth every time he looked at Harry, and he was constantly flexing his fingers, as though itching to place them around Harry's throat.

Percy had got his top-grade N.E.W.T.s, Fred and George had scraped a handful of O.W.L.s each. Gryffindor House, meanwhile, largely thanks to their spectacular performance in the Quidditch Cup, had won the House championship for the third year running. This meant that the end of term feast took place amid decorations of scarlet and gold, and that the Gryffindor table was the noisiest of the lot, as everybody celebrated. Even Harry managed to forget about the journey back to the Dursleys the next day as he ate, drank, talked, and laughed with the rest.

As the Hogwarts Express pulled out of the station the next morning, Hermione gave Harry and Ron some surprising news.

"I went to see Professor McGonagall this morning, just before breakfast. I've decided to drop Muggle Studies."

"But you passed your exam with three hundred and twenty percent!" said Ron.

"I know," sighed Hermione, "but I can't stand another year like this one. That Time-Turner, it was driving me mad. I've handed it in. Without Muggle Studies and Divination, I'll be able to have a normal schedule again." She looked around at Harry, who was watching Hogwarts disappear from view behind a mountain. Two whole months before he'd see it again…

"Oh, cheer up, Harry!" said Hermione sadly. Suddenly, an inkling of an idea began in her mind. She would have to ask her parents first… and then Harry as well, but…

Crookshanks, who had been staring at him until now, suddenly jumped onto his lap to offer him some comfort, much to their collective surprise.

"I think Crookshanks likes you Harry", she said smiling at him.

Ron mumbled something that sounded like 'orange' and 'menace'. Obviously he hadn't gotten over the many scratches he had gotten from Crookshanks when he had stepped onto his tail that morning.

"I've been thinking about the holidays," said Ron. "Harry, you've got to come and stay with us. I'll fix it up with Mum and Dad, and then I'll call you. I know how to use a fellytone now —"

"A telephone, Ron," said Hermione. "Honestly, you should take Muggle Studies next year…"

Ron ignored her.

"It's the Quidditch World Cup this summer! How about it, Harry? Come and stay, and we'll go and see it! Dad can usually get tickets from work."

This proposal had the effect of cheering Harry up a great deal.

"Yeah… I bet the Dursleys would be pleased to let me come… especially after what I did to Aunt Marge…"

Feeling considerably more cheerful, Harry joined Ron and Hermione in several games of Exploding Snap, and when the witch with the tea cart arrived, he bought himself a very large lunch, though nothing with chocolate in it.

But it was late in the afternoon before the thing that made him truly happy turned up…

"Harry," said Hermione suddenly, peering over his shoulder. "What's that thing outside your window?"

Harry turned to look outside. Something very small and gray was bobbing in and out of sight beyond the glass. He stood up for a better look and saw that it was a tiny owl, carrying a letter that was much too big for it. The owl was so small, in fact, that it kept tumbling over in the air, buffeted this way and that in the train's slipstream. Harry quickly pulled down the window, stretched out his arm, and caught it. It felt like a very fluffy Snitch. He brought it carefully inside.

The owl dropped its letter onto Harry's seat and began zooming around their compartment, apparently very pleased with itself for accomplishing its task.

Hedwig clicked her beak with a sort of dignified disapproval. Crookshanks sat up in his seat, following the owl with his great yellow eyes. Ron, noticing this, snatched the owl safely out of harm's way.

Harry picked up the letter. It was addressed to him. He ripped open the letter, and shouted, "It's from Sirius!"

"What?" said Ron and Hermione excitedly. "Read it aloud!"

_Dear Harry,_

_I hope this finds you before you reach your aunt and uncle. I don't know whether they're used to owl post._

_Buckbeak and I are in hiding. I won't tell you where, in case this owl falls into the wrong hands. I have some doubt about his reliability, but he is the best I could find, and he did seem eager for the job._

_I believe the Dementors are still searching for me, but they haven't a hope of finding me here. I am planning to allow some Muggles to glimpse me soon, a long way from Hogwarts, so that the security on the castle will be lifted._

_There is something I never got around to telling you during our brief meeting. It was I who sent you the Firebolt —_

"Ha!" said Hermione triumphantly. "See! I told you it was from him!"

"Yes, but he hadn't jinxed it, had he?" said Ron. "Ouch!" The tiny owl now hooting happily in his hand, had nibbled one of his fingers in what it seemed to think was an affectionate way.

– _Crookshanks took the order to the Owl Office for me. I used your name but told them to take the gold from my own Gringotts vault. Please consider it as thirteen birthdays' worth of presents from your godfather._

_I would also like to apologize for the fright I think I gave you that night last year when you left your uncle's house. I had only hoped to get a glimpse of you before starting my journey north, but I think the sight of me alarmed you._

_I am enclosing something else for you, which I think will make your next year at Hogwarts more enjoyable._

_If ever you need me, send word. Your owl will find me._

_I'll write again soon._

_Sirius_

Harry looked eagerly inside the envelope. There was another piece of parchment in there. He read it through quickly and felt suddenly as warm and contented as though he'd swallowed a bottle of hot butterbeer in one gulp.

_I, Sirius Black, Harry Potter's godfather, hereby give him permission to visit Hogsmeade on weekends._

"That'll be good enough for Dumbledore!" said Harry happily, grinning at Hermione who smiled back. He looked back at Sirius's letter. "Hang on, there's a PS…"

_I thought your friend Ron might like to keep this owl, as it's my fault he no longer has a rat._

Ron's eyes widened. The minute owl was still hooting excitedly. "Keep him?" he said uncertainly. He looked closely at the owl for a moment and then, "Alright," he said, shrugging his shoulders.

Harry read and reread the letter from Sirius all the way back into King's Cross station. It was still clutched tightly in his hand as he, Ron, and Hermione stepped back through the barrier of platform nine and three-quarters. Harry spotted Uncle Vernon at once. He was standing a good distance from Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, eyeing them suspiciously, and when Mrs. Weasley hugged Harry in greeting, his worst suspicions about them seemed confirmed.

"I'll call about the World Cup!" Ron yelled after Harry as Harry bid him and Hermione good-bye, then wheeled the trolley bearing his trunk and Hedwig's cage toward Uncle Vernon, who greeted him in his usual fashion.

Hermione turned towards him and smiled shyly. "I'll miss you Harry."

He smiled back "I'll miss you too."

Hermione pulled him into a tight hug. "Keep in touch." She softly said in his ear.

"I promise" he whispered back, making Hermione shudder with pleasure.

"I'll see you soon" she said. Then she planted a firm kiss on his cheek, lingering just a second before she pulled away. And then she was gone.

Harry started back towards his uncle, who had been watching with a disapproving look in his beady eyes.

"What's that?" he snarled, staring at the envelope Harry was still clutching in his hand, suddenly giving Harry an idea to make the summer better. "If it's another form for me to sign, you've got another —"

"It's not," said Harry cheerfully. "It's a letter from my godfather."

"Godfather?" sputtered Uncle Vernon. "You haven't got a godfather!"

"Yes, I have," said Harry brightly. "He was my mum and dad's best friend. He's a convicted murderer, but he's broken out of wizard prison and he's on the run. He likes to keep in touch with me, though… keep up with my news… check if I'm happy…"

And, grinning broadly at the look of horror on Uncle Vernon's face, Harry set off toward the station exit, Hedwig rattling along in front of him, for what looked like a much better summer than the last.

* * *

><p>Read and Review people. :)<p>

There will be many instance is the future where I will pick up text from the books and use it. This fanfic is essencially a rewrite of canon the way I think it should have been,

YelloJacket


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